Multi-vendor marketplaces represent one of the most exciting business models, allowing entrepreneurs to bring major innovation to their respective industries. But building and managing a marketplace traditionally requires significant technical resources and complex development. 

That's where Nautical Commerce comes in.

We recently hosted a live walkthrough of the Nautical Commerce platform, showcasing the ease and speed the software brings to marketplace creation.

During the session, Nautical Commerce’s Co-founder and Lead Architect, James Throsby, and Principal Product Manager, Kay Chang, walked through the key steps to get your marketplace up and running. 

Below is a brief overview of the live product demo. Plus, skip to the end for the full video recording.

Understanding the end result: The Mochi Munch marketplace

The demonstration began with a look at "Mochi Munch," an example international snacks marketplace. This sample marketplace showcased what's possible with Nautical Commerce, featuring:

• A professionally designed homepage with hero banners, navigation, featured categories, and popular products
• Organized category and collection pages for easy product discovery
• Seller storefronts with customizable branding and descriptions
• Multi-vendor checkout that allows customers to purchase from multiple sellers in a single transaction

The impressive part? The entire marketplace was built using Nautical's no-code tools and drag-and-drop editor.

Setting up your marketplace: The admin experience

The first step to setting up your marketplace is signing in to your dashboard and inputting your key business details. 

Business details

Starting a marketplace requires just a few basic details:

• Company name and marketplace name
• Headquarters address
• Default time zone and currency

Customizing your storefront

To customize your storefront, you need to take a few key actions, including: 

• Upload your logo and set your color palette
• Choose your fonts (with direct integration to Google Fonts)
• Configure your navigation structure with simple drag-and-drop functionality
• Set up your domain name when you're ready to launch

The drag-and-drop editor allows marketplace owners to build and modify their homepage and other pages without coding knowledge. You can add components like featured product sections, category showcases, or seller highlights with just a few clicks, and changes appear instantly without requiring rebuilds or publishing delays.

Product configuration

To publish an effective marketplace storefront, you need clean product data with which to populate the store. 

In the admin dashboard, operators can set up their product architecture through “product settings.” This is where they can: 

• Create categories for hierarchical organization of products
• Define collections for arbitrary groupings (like "Best sellers")
• Set up product attributes (like flavor, size, or country of origin)
• Create product templates that enforce consistent data across similar products

This structured approach ensures high-quality product data, while giving marketplace operators control over what information sellers must provide.

Shipping and payment setup

The next step is setting up shipping and payment details. 

When it comes to shipping, operators can establish their shipping rules under “settings.” In this section, you can: 

• Define your shipping model (hybrid vs. fulfilled by marketplace vs. fulfilled by sellers)
• Control your shipping rates (based on seller order total vs. marketplace order total)
• Set your shipping zones and rates
• Define warehouse locations for marketplace and sellers

To set up payments, head to the apps marketplace. You can integrate with payment gateways like Stripe with minimal configuration.

The seller experience

One of our favorite parts of the Nautical platform is how it creates a streamlined experience for sellers joining your marketplace.

Seller onboarding

Nautical makes it simple for vendors to join your marketplace:

• Sellers can apply directly through a customizable application form
• Marketplace operators review and approve applications
• Vendors accept your terms and commission structure through a digital agreement in the product

Seller account setup

Once approved, sellers can quickly set up their presence:

• Configure payment accounts for receiving payouts
• Define shipping options or use marketplace-defined shipping zones
• Customize their storefront with logos, banners, and descriptions
• Add staff accounts for team collaboration

Product management

Sellers have flexible options for adding products:

• Direct product creation through an intuitive interface
• Bulk CSV import for large catalogs
• Integration with existing Shopify stores
• Support for product variants (like different pack sizes)

The platform enforces the product templates and attributes defined by the marketplace, while giving sellers the freedom to manage their inventory effectively.

The customer experience

From a buyer's perspective, Nautical provides a seamless shopping experience:

• Intuitive browsing across categories and collections
• Ability to shop from multiple vendors in a single session
• Unified checkout process with straightforward shipping options
• Streamlined payment processing

The multi-vendor checkout is particularly notable. Customers can purchase products from different sellers without completing multiple transactions, creating a frictionless experience that encourages larger basket sizes.

Fulfilling and paying out orders

Once an order is placed, Nautical provides robust tools for marketplace operations behind the scenes:

• Order management with visibility into fulfillment status
• Automated calculations for seller payouts
• Commission tracking based on marketplace agreements
• Detailed statements for transparency with sellers
• Built-in analytics for tracking marketplace performance

The platform handles complex financial orchestration automatically, including calculating commissions, managing adjustments, and processing payouts to sellers.

Live recording of the product demo

Launching your marketplace quickly

From customizing your storefront to paying out sellers, you can build your entire marketplace journey on Nautical, with no code. We want you to be able to focus on your unique value proposition and vendor relationships rather than technical infrastructure.

Whether you're an established business looking to expand into the marketplace model or an entrepreneur with a vision for connecting buyers and sellers in a specific niche, Nautical provides the infrastructure needed to turn that vision into reality, without massive development resources or technical expertise.

Explore the product for yourself by signing up for a 14-day free trial.